Stephen King is one of my favourite authors, but I never could handle the Stand because it dragged on for far too long. He's good, but not good enough to pull off a 1200 page tome.
Currently, I'm into The Woman Who Walked Into Doors by Roddy Doyle. It's about a woman who's husband became abusive, her husband's death, her children, and her struggle with alcoholism and depression. It's very well written and rather sad.